In your own words, What does being a ''Baptist'' mean to you ?

[alexsonofmatthew]

I am looking for a denomination and am wanting to know more about Baptists and thought this would be an interesting question which would help me learn more about your views.

God Bless

 

[Bluelion]

The biggest thing is in baptism. We believe a person must be of age to know what they are doing, be saved and understand what it means. We believe in full immersion. We do not believe in baby baptism or of children who do not understand. We believe it must be the persons choice not the parent.

We believe the Bible is the word of God and was inspired by God written through me that each book retain the personality of the writer it was God using them to write it. As such the Bible is with out error and complete word of God. No part in the Bible is untrue, if one part is untrue it is all untrue and must completely be thrown out.

From there there are branch Conservative baptist, southern baptist, reform baptist, Calvinist baptist. Some Baptist reject the other like Calvinist.

I am a conservative baptist.

 

[cardoctor]

I have attended a variety of baptist churches over the years and have learned that there is not a cohesive definition for baptist into which all the baptist churches I attended fall.

Baptist, to me, means a the miscellaneous drawer of protestant churches

 

[JGiddings]

I come from a Baptist tradition and respect it very much.
To be a Baptist cannot be summed up in a post. It means to be Christian, precise in methods regarding the how-to's of the faith, and zealous for all things biblical. There is SO much more because what I described also describes my non-denom church I attend now.

This book helped me to understand that which I was/am a part of in the Body of Christ. It is a wonderful summary.

The Baptist Way: Distinctives of a Baptist Church: R. Stanton Norman: 9780805431520: Amazon.com: Books

 

[Radagast]

Bear in mind that there are big differences between Baptists in the US and Baptists in Australia. On the whole, Baptists in the US tend to be a lot more conservative, theologically, and Baptists in Australia a lot less so.

And Calvinistic Baptists are very scarce in Australia.

 

[standingtall]

Bear in mind that there are big differences between Baptists in the US and Baptists in Australia. On the whole, Baptists in the US tend to be a lot more conservative, theologically, and Baptists in Australia a lot less so.

And Calvinistic Baptists are very scarce in Australia.

Indeed. Matter of fact, North American Baptists only comprise about a third of Baptists worldwide*. U.S. Baptists are actually a minority in the big picture.

* ed. (2005), "Baptists", The Oxford dictionary of the Christian church, New York: Oxford University Press

 

[alexsonofmatthew]

What exactly is a baptist?

It seems by some of the answers that different Baptist communities would differ from the next... is that an accurate account?

 

[standingtall]

It seems by some of the answers that different Baptist communities would differ from the next... is that an accurate account?

Yes. There are a number of different views in the Baptist community.

Just to highlight one:
Some Baptists here in the U.S. actually get upset if you refer to them as a "denomination". I quite frankly don't care, but I'm not sure how that is in Australia or other countries.

 

[alexsonofmatthew]

Who are the Southern Baptists ?

 

[OzSpen]

I am looking for a denomination and am wanting to know more about Baptists and thought this would be an interesting question which would help me learn more about your views.

God Bless

Alex,

I'm an Aussie whose parents went to a Baptist church after they were converted to Christ in regional Queensland as a result of the 1959 Billy Graham Crusade. My wife and I were married in that Baptist church.

These are the characteristics that attracted me to the Baptists:

• They had a high view of the authority of Scripture (not so in some of them these days);
• As a result, they believe in and practised the Gospel with a strong programme of evangelism. This Gospel was one where they preached Christ as the only way to eternal life.
• They followed what I understand to be the biblical mandate of believer's baptism (Matt 28:18-20). Baptism is for those who are disciples of Christ.
• At that time, they had expository preachers who preached through various books of the Bible, with application (this is not the way it is today in my part of Aust.).
• They were a caring community of believers who loved one another and were an example of Christ to the community.

In Christ,
Oz

 

[JB123]

I live in England, and am a member of a Baptist Church affiliated to the Baptist Union of Great Britain.

My understanding of Baptist identity is as follows:-

1) Belief in God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. (i.e. Baptists are in the mainstream of Trinitarian churches).

2) Belief in the Deity and Humanity of Jesus Christ.

3) Belief that baptism should be offered to believers, upon repentance and faith. (This distinguishes Baptists from some other Christian groups which practice infant baptism).

4) Belief in the priesthood of all believers (This means that all believers have direct access to God, and do not have to go through an appointed Priest.)

5) Belief in the autonomy of the local church and congregation. (This means that the local church meeting is the basis of authority in the church, and it is not therefore under the authority of any hierarchical ecclesiastical structure. Put simply, a Baptist Church is a "bottom up" organisation, not a "top down" organisation", and is thus distinguished from some other Christian groups such as the Roman Catholic church and the Anglican Church/World-wide Anglican communion).

Hope this helps!

 

[Bluelion]

Who are the Southern Baptists ?

southern baptist are in the southern part of the USA, they are know for hellfire and brimstone preaching. Which means they are Know to stress a person is going to hell in order to bring a person to repent. They are very strict and practice Not drinking alcohol and not drinking on Sundays In fact in the south you still get places which can not serve alcohol, many of alcohol regulations come from this church. They can be very hard people to deal with.

 

[Radagast]

southern baptist are in the southern part of the USA, they are know for hellfire and brimstone preaching ...They can be very hard people to deal with.

That doesn't seem fair. For a bit more of a balanced view, see Southern Baptist Convention - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[SoulBap6]

This what I believe.

The Holy Scriptures

We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. The scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed and, therefore, are the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to man. The scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical and historical meaning. The King James Version of the Bible shall be the official and only translation used by the church. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21)


Dispensationalism

We believe that the scriptures are to be interpreted in their natural, literal sense and that they reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which define man's responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. Three of these dispensations-the law, the church, and the kingdom-are the subjects of detailed revelation in scripture. (Gen. 1:28; 1 Cor. 9:17; 2 Cor. 3:9-18; Gal. 3:13-25; Eph. 1:10; 3:2-10; Col. 1:24-25, 27; Rev. 20:2-6)


The Godhead

We believe in one triune God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; John 14:10, 26)


The Person and Work of Christ

1.We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8)
2.We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; 1 Pet. 2:24; Eph. 1:7; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
3.We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of representative, intercessor, and advocate. (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Rom. 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2)

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit

1.We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and, that He is the supernatural agent in regeneration, indwelling and sealing believers until the day of redemption. (John 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14)
2.We believe that He is the divine teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27)
3.We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry. (Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12)
4.We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit, and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing. (1 Cor. 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22)

The Total Depravity of Man

We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God; but that in Adam's sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Man is totally depraved and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. (Gen. 1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19)


Salvation

We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins. We believe that all sins, except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, are forgivable. (John 1:12; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Matt. 12:31-32; 1 John 1:9)


The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers

1.We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1; 38-39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; 1 Pet. 1:4-5)
2.We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God's Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh. (Rom. 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)

The Church

1.We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons. (1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27)
2.We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)
3.We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or control. (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom. 16:1, 4; 1 Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Pet. 5:1-4)
4.We recognize water baptism and the Lord's Supper as the scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in this age. (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)

Separation

We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord. God commands His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations, and to refrain from all immodest and immoderate appearances, piercings, and bodily markings. (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11; Lev. 19:28; 1 Cor. 6:19-20)


The Second Advent of Christ

We believe in that blessed hope, the personal, imminent return of Christ who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Great Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the nation of Israel. (Ps. 89:3-4; Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4-11; I Thess. 1:10; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Rev. 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6)


The Eternal State

1.We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28, 29; 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5-6, 12-13)
2.We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord. (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; 3:21; I Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6)
3.We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment. (Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15)

The Personality of Satan

We believe that Satan is a person, the author of sin and the cause of the fall of man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man; and that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire. (Job 1:6-7; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:10)


Creation

We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin. (Gen. 1-2; Ex. 20:11)


Civil Government

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God. (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 2:13-14)

 

[Bluelion]

That doesn't seem fair. For a bit more of a balanced view, see Southern Baptist Convention - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

sorry grew up in a southern baptist church, maybe its not fair to say about all, but many, BTW i see your in Australia are your from the USA?
Wikipedia is not a creditable source either.

 

[Bluelion]

This what I believe.

The Holy Scriptures

We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the verbally and plenary inspired Word of God. The scriptures are inerrant, infallible and God-breathed and, therefore, are the final authority for faith and life. The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the complete and divine revelation of God to man. The scriptures shall be interpreted according to their normal grammatical and historical meaning. The King James Version of the Bible shall be the official and only translation used by the church. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21)


Dispensationalism

We believe that the scriptures are to be interpreted in their natural, literal sense and that they reveal divinely determined dispensations or rules of life which define man's responsibilities in successive ages. These dispensations are not ways of salvation, but rather are divinely ordered stewardships by which God directs man according to His purpose. Three of these dispensations-the law, the church, and the kingdom-are the subjects of detailed revelation in scripture. (Gen. 1:28; 1 Cor. 9:17; 2 Cor. 3:9-18; Gal. 3:13-25; Eph. 1:10; 3:2-10; Col. 1:24-25, 27; Rev. 20:2-6)


The Godhead

We believe in one triune God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-each co-eternal in being, co-identical in nature, co-equal in power and glory, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; John 14:10, 26)


The Person and Work of Christ

1.We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men. (Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Luke 1:35; John 1:1-2, 14; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Gal. 4:4-5; Phil. 2:5-8)
2.We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice, and that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Acts 2:18-36; Rom. 3:24-25; 1 Pet. 2:24; Eph. 1:7; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
3.We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of representative, intercessor, and advocate. (Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Rom. 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2)

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit

1.We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and, that He is the supernatural agent in regeneration, indwelling and sealing believers until the day of redemption. (John 16:8-11; Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 3:6; Eph. 1:13-14)
2.We believe that He is the divine teacher who assists believers to understand and appropriate the scriptures and that it is the privilege and duty of all the saved to be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 1:17-18; 5:18; 1 John 2:20, 27)
3.We believe that God is sovereign in the bestowal of spiritual gifts to every believer. God uniquely uses evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip believers in the assembly in order that they can do the work of the ministry. (Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11, 28; Eph. 4:7-12)
4.We believe that the sign gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and the gift of healing, were temporary. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism or filling of the Holy Spirit, and that ultimate deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection, though God frequently chooses to answer the prayers of believers for physical healing. (1 Cor. 1:22; 13:8; 14:21-22)

The Total Depravity of Man

We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God; but that in Adam's sin the human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God. Man is totally depraved and, of himself, utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. (Gen. 1:26-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-3; 4:17-19)


Salvation

We believe that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins. We believe that all sins, except blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, are forgivable. (John 1:12; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-10; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Matt. 12:31-32; 1 John 1:9)


The Eternal Security and Assurance of Believers

1.We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1; 38-39; 1 Cor. 1:4-8; 1 Pet. 1:4-5)
2.We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God's Word, which, however, clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion to the flesh. (Rom. 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)

The Church

1.We believe that the local church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is solely made up of born-again persons. (1 Cor. 12:12-14; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 1:22-23; 5:25-27)
2.We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. (Acts 14:27; 20:17, 28-32; 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)
3.We believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any external authority or control. (Acts 13:1-4; 15:19-31; 20:28; Rom. 16:1, 4; 1 Cor. 3:9, 16; 5:4-7, 13; 1 Pet. 5:1-4)
4.We recognize water baptism and the Lord's Supper as the scriptural ordinances of obedience for the church in this age. (Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 2:41-42; 18:18; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)

Separation

We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord. God commands His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations, and to refrain from all immodest and immoderate appearances, piercings, and bodily markings. (Rom. 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11; Lev. 19:28; 1 Cor. 6:19-20)


The Second Advent of Christ

We believe in that blessed hope, the personal, imminent return of Christ who will rapture His church prior to the seven-year tribulation period. At the end of the Great Tribulation, Christ will personally and visibly return with His saints, to establish His earthly Messianic Kingdom which was promised to the nation of Israel. (Ps. 89:3-4; Dan. 2:31-45; Zech. 14:4-11; I Thess. 1:10; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; Titus 2:13; Rev. 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6)


The Eternal State

1.We believe in the bodily resurrection of all men, the saved to eternal life, and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matt. 25:46; John 5:28, 29; 11:25-26; Rev. 20:5-6, 12-13)
2.We believe that the souls of the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection, when spirit, soul, and body are reunited to be glorified forever with the Lord. (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; 3:21; I Thess. 4:16-17; Rev. 20:4-6)
3.We believe that the souls of unbelievers remain, after death, in conscious punishment and torment until the second resurrection, when with soul and body reunited, they shall appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire, not to be annihilated, but to suffer everlasting conscious punishment and torment. (Matt. 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15)

The Personality of Satan

We believe that Satan is a person, the author of sin and the cause of the fall of man; that he is the open and declared enemy of God and man; and that he shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire. (Job 1:6-7; Isa. 14:12-17; Matt. 4:2-11; 25:41; Rev. 20:10)


Creation

We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the Gap Theory, the Day-Age Theory, and Theistic Evolution as unscriptural theories of origin. (Gen. 1-2; Ex. 20:11)


Civil Government

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific biblical responsibilities and balanced those responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective biblically assigned spheres of responsibility under God. (Rom. 13:1-7; Eph. 5:22-24; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 2:13-14)

I noticed one of the 5 points of Calvinist in there Total depravity, Are you a one point Calvinist. Which really is no such thing sense you have to agree on all 5 points are you 5 point cause if so that is another branch of baptist for the op.

OP you see there are a lot of different baptist.

 

[OzSpen]

sorry grew up in a southern baptist church, maybe its not fair to say about all, but many, BTW i see your in Australia are your from the USA?
Wikipedia is not a creditable source either.

I also am an Aussie, but my family and I lived for 7 years in the USA. I preached for a number of Southern Baptist churches as a guest preacher and never found them to be the kind of people you have described. Perhaps some are and the one you were raised in was, but I urge you not to label them all like that.

Are there any Southern Baptists replying to this thread who can give another view to the one you have given OR are they mostly like you have described? That was not my experience. They had a strong view on the authority of Scripture and were theological conservatives.

One of my former professors was the late Harold Lindsell, who wrote the seminal book, The Battle for the Bible (Zondervan), warning in 1976 what would happen to those who moved away from the inerrancy of Scripture. He held membership in a Southern Baptist Church. Here is news about his DEATH.

Oz

 

[Bluelion]

I also am an Aussie, but my family and I lived for 7 years in the USA. I preached for a number of Southern Baptist churches as a guest preacher and never found them to be the kind of people you have described. Perhaps some are and the one you were raised in was, but I urge you not to label them all like that.

Are there any Southern Baptists replying to this thread who can give another view to the one you have given OR are they mostly like you have described? That was not my experience. They had a strong view on the authority of Scripture and were theological conservatives.

One of my former professors was the late Harold Lindsell, who wrote the seminal book, The Battle for the Bible (Zondervan), warning in 1976 what would happen to those who moved away from the inerrancy of Scripture. He held membership in a Southern Baptist Church. Here is news about his DEATH.

Oz

I am sorry, i'm not against them just have a bad taste in my mouth from what I went through. In this country if you here some one say the are southern baptist they say oh no here it comes. i remember being a kid of 5 in the church and listening over and over again about hell I was afraid even though I had been saved for 31 years of Going to hell until a friend showed me the truth. She was from England lived there too, I thank God He spoke to me through her.

Like I said i can not say all, but the ones I have encountered, and the drinking laws in the south that is all true.

I have a lot of feelings about what i went through.

 

[JB123]

Hi SoulBap6,

What you have written is fine as your personal statement of faith, but is certainly not rue or typical of Baptists universally. I still believe that the points I made in my earlier post are more definitive of Baptists worldwide, and demonstrate what makes our denomination distinctive against other Christian groups. You have covered a large number of the finer points of theology, which may or may not be shared by other Baptists, and which in deed might also be shared, or not, by members of other Christian groups.

My point is that what you have written is your personal Credo, and not a statement of Baptist faith.

 

[dysert]

Who are the Southern Baptists ?

southern baptist are in the southern part of the USA, they are know for hellfire and brimstone preaching. Which means they are Know to stress a person is going to hell in order to bring a person to repent. They are very strict and practice Not drinking alcohol and not drinking on Sundays In fact in the south you still get places which can not serve alcohol, many of alcohol regulations come from this church. They can be very hard people to deal with.

Having spent half of my Christian life as a member of a Southern Baptist church, I disagree with what Bluelion wrote. That being said, I've lived in the Midwest and not the deep South, so there may be a geographical distinction in how Southern Baptists view themselves.

My experience as a Southern Baptist, greatly condensed, is:

• Financially support the Southern Baptist Convention.
• Financially support the Lottie Moon mission.
• Financially support the <I forget the name> mission.

Theologically, Southern Baptists are conservative and take a literal view of the Bible, implying (again, greatly condensed):

• The Bible is the sole authority concerning doctrinal issues. When properly interpreted it is infallible. (Many, myself included, would add that it is totally inerrant in the original manuscripts.)
• The Bible was inspired by God.
• God is a (the) Trinity.
• The only way to salvation is by God's grace through faith in Jesus as the Christ. A person is not saved by their works.
• Jesus was the perfect (sinless) God-Man who was born of the virgin Mary and whose death & resurrection occurred to provide substitutionary atonement for anyone who believes on Him.
• Once you're saved, you can't lose your salvation.
• Jesus is coming again to establish His eternal kingdom.
• Baptism is for those old enough to know what they're doing, and it is by immersion. It follows the acceptance of Jesus as Lord and Savior.
• The elements used in Communion (the bread and the cup) are symbolic of Jesus' body and blood (i.e., there's no transubstantiation).
• (Reserved for other important beliefs I didn't think to mention.)

Hope this helps.